Plastic pollution is a growing problem. This is, in part, due to unsustainable business practices at every stage of the process – from manufacturing to packing to delivery. By switching to sustainable business practices, we may be able to minimize plastic pollution. This paper aims to evaluate the feasibility of a sustainable grocery delivery company in a competitive economic landscape. Using data from a sustainable delivery company, we calculated costs associated with reusable food containers, compared the CO2 emissions of various delivery methods, and analyzed customer feedback. This gave us an understanding of the high operating costs and consumer mistrust faced by sustainable companies. We found that reusable packaging can be economically advantageous if companies enact systems to reduce excess cost. Analysis of our data suggests these changes are much easier to implement as a well-established company with a large customer base rather than a startup. We also found that delivery e-bikes are viable in a city, but an alternative is required to expand to suburban or rural areas. The main barrier to economic viability for a sustainable company is establishing the infrastructure required to reduce costs associated with sustainable practices, improve consumer understanding of their system, and plan for scalability. This suggests that public efforts should focus more on fighting greenwashing or building systems to help established companies make a change towards sustainability.

• This report represents the work of one or more WPI undergraduate students submitted to the faculty as evidence of completion of a degree requirement. WPI routinely publishes these reports on its website without editorial or peer review.

Creator

• Osgood, Adam
• Klein, Timothy
• Brougher, Gregoire
• Cass, Phillip

Subject

• Environment
• Food
• Infrastructure
• Health
• Culture
• Community
• Energy
• Innovation
• Water
• Sustainability
• Project-Based Learning
• Industry

Publisher

• Worcester Polytechnic Institute

Identifier

• E-project-050523-121750
• 109091

Keyword

• Sustainable City
• Plastic
• Emissions
• Sustainability
• Environment
• Grocery Delivery

Advisor

• Stanlick, Sarah Eliza
• Foo, Katherine
• Arslan, Gizem

Year

• 2023

Center

• Berlin, Germany Project Center - IQP

Sponsor

• Alpakas Technologies GmbH

UN Sustainable Development Goals

• 3 - Good Health and Well-being
• 6 - Clean Water and Sanitation
• 7 - Affordable and Clean Energy
• 9 - Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure
• 11 - Sustainable Cities and Communities
• 12 - Responsible Consumption and Production
• 13 - Climate Action
• 14 - Life Below Water
• 15 - Life On Land

Date created

• 2023-05-05

Resource type

• Interactive Qualifying Project

Source

• E-project-050523-121750

Rights statement

• In Copyright

License

• Creative Commons BY-NC Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International

Last modified

• 2023-06-13